


Puppydog

by hclidayangel



Category: Minecraft (Video Game)
Genre: Brotherly Bonding, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, Implied/Referenced Suicide, Minecraft, Read at Your Own Risk, TommyInnit Angst (Video Blogging RPF), Underage Drug Use, no beta read
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-03-03
Updated: 2021-03-03
Packaged: 2021-03-16 13:54:12
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,247
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29825952
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/hclidayangel/pseuds/hclidayangel
Summary: Murkwell had a bad ring to it. As soon as Tommy laid his eyes on the beaten down town sign, he knew that he wasn’t going to like it there. The sidewalks were cracked, the streetlights were broken, and shattered glass from bottles of alcohol were scattered along the roads. It wasn’t a pleasant sight.-------Or, Tommy moves to a new town and struggles to fit in. Thankfully there are some people who can help.
Relationships: Awsamdude & TommyInnit, Jschlatt & Toby Smith | Tubbo & TommyInnit, Tubbo & Tommyinnit, Wilbur Soot & Technoblade & TommyInnit & Phil Watson, Wilbur Soot & TommyInnit & Phil Watson, Wilbut Soot & TommyInnit
Comments: 2
Kudos: 42





	Puppydog

**Author's Note:**

> MASSIVE trigger warning for this story. This is dark and mainly me projecting. Please read at your own risk.

Murkwell had a bad ring to it. As soon as Tommy laid his eyes on the beaten-down town sign, he knew that he wasn’t going to like it there. The sidewalks were cracked, the streetlights were broken, and shattered glass from bottles of alcohol were scattered along the roads. It wasn’t a pleasant sight.

Even as Tommy peered down onto the neighborhood from his bedroom window, after unpacking all of his things and making himself feel at home, he still had a sense he didn’t belong there. Everything was so unfamiliar to him. It made his stomach hurt.

The move was sudden. One moment he was playing video games with his father, destroying him in a first-person shooter and leaping around the living room in victory. Then came the smashing plates, the shouting matches, and the devastation of covering his ears with his pillow and whispering to himself that everything was okay.

Tommy’s parents never got along. He knew that from a young age, even when they tried to hide it from him. The way his mom would glare at his dad made his hairs stand up on his arms. His father loathed his mother in return, he could feel it when he walked into the room. It was sickening, but it was hidden, and Tommy could pretend it wasn’t there.

Until he couldn’t pretend anymore.

Tommy wasn’t exactly sure when they stopped trying to hide it, but slowly their backhanded comments to each other at the dinner table would turn into screams. Sometimes Tommy had to slink under the table and eat on the floor, not that his parents would notice anyway. They were always too busy scratching and clawing at one another to even remember that they had a son.

It was stupid that Tommy didn’t see what was coming. He should’ve known that there would be a breaking point. A rubber band always snaps when it’s stretched too far, and this rubber band was getting pulled beyond its limit. Maybe his child-like hope had shielded him from the truth. 

The truth came sooner than expected. Tommy was woken at 2am, shaken to consciousness by his mother. She had fire in her eyes, full of hatred and mania. “We’re leaving,” She had hissed to him. “Pack your things.”

Tommy didn’t ask any questions or argue. He knew better than to object. Maybe he did see it coming after all, since he packed his things in a collected manner and kept his cool. Despite that, his heart was pounding in his chest. He wondered if it pounded loud enough that it would wake up his dad and tell him what’s going on.

Unfortunately, his father never woke up, and Tommy left with his mother at approximately 2:23am on a Tuesday.

Now there he was, standing against his bedroom window and watching his neighbor throw their leftovers at the golden retriever chained to the tree. The dog tore apart the pieces of chicken, animalistic and untamed. It was obvious that the dog wasn’t treated right.

Sometimes Tommy felt like he was chained to a tree too.

“Tom!”

The shout from his mother caused Tommy to clench his jaw. He still wasn’t sure how he felt about her after this whole fiasco. He didn’t know if he was angry due to the sudden change, or if he was grateful that now his nights would be peaceful and quiet. She was both an angel and a demon, a sinner and a savior.

Tommy left his bedroom with reluctance, shutting the door behind him with a creak. As he walked down the stairs and into the living room, he noticed that quite a few things were still left unpacked. Boxes were scattered around the floor. He almost tripped on one of them.

Tommy’s mother was sitting on the couch. She had money laid out on the table. “I need you to go buy me some cigarettes from the gas station,” She ordered.

It wasn’t fair. Tommy wanted to scream at her that he shouldn’t have to go buy poison for his own mother’s lungs, but he knew better than that.

“I don’t know where the gas station is,” Tommy pointed out. It was a lie. He had seen it when they first drove into town and he still knew exactly where it was. He just wanted to see if his mother cared.

She just shrugged. “Ask the neighbors.”

Tommy watched his mom reach forward to grab the wine bottle from the coffee table. He furrowed his eyebrows when he saw her take a swig of it. Scrunching up his nose at the smell of alcohol, Tommy snatched the money off of the table and went to leave.

As soon as Tommy opened the front door, a cool autumn breeze struck his nose. He was glad that he was wearing his favorite red hoodie. He hopped down the front steps and reached for his bike that was leaning against the railing. He figured that he should get a lock for it soon since the neighborhood didn’t seem like the nicest.

It was a gloomy day, Tommy noticed as he mounted his bike. He stared at the grey clouds that rolled in the sky as he began pedaling. The air was damp, letting him know that it would rain soon. The grass smelled of morning dew and his hands were clammy. It was refreshing.

The bike ride didn’t take long. The gas station wasn’t too far away, it only took 15 minutes to arrive at the place. He settled his bike against one of the bike racks outside and immediately dragged himself towards the door. The wind bit at his ears so he wanted to get inside as quickly as possible.

The bell rang as Tommy pushed open the door. The warmth of the building quickly enveloped him, causing him to smile. He made his way towards the counter swiftly, eager to get back home and into his comfortable bed.

The cashier looked nice. Tommy’s gaze flicked down to his chest and saw the name _Sam_ printed on a small badge. As he approached, he flashed Sam a grin.

Tommy cleared his throat. “Excuse me, could I have a pack of cigarettes please?” He requested politely, hoping that the man wouldn’t ask any questions.

Tommy’s hopes went unanswered as Sam quickly frowned. “Aren’t you a little young to be smoking cigarettes?” He pointed out with uncertainty.

Tommy awkwardly clasped his hands together. “They’re not for me, they’re for my mother,” He briskly explained. He then reached his hand to his back pocket, pulling out the money his mom gave him. “She gave me money for them, I just-”

“A mother shouldn’t be sending her child to get her cigarettes, don’t you think?” Sam interrupted with a skeptical look.

The teen’s eyebrows furrowed in frustration. “Well, I can call her right now and have her tell you that they’re for her,” Tommy offered desperately. He hated how cranky his mother was without her cigarettes.

Sam shook his head with a sigh. “I believe you, kiddo. How about this; buy the cigarettes for you, and you take that money and buy yourself some candy,” He suggested as he reached up and grabbed the cigarettes off of the shelf behind him.

Tommy was confused. _Why would he buy the cigarettes for me? I can handle myself._ “No really, it’s fine, I don’t like chocolate,” He lied. He hated being pitied.

Sam looked back at Tommy, unimpressed. “I’m buying the cigarettes,” He repeated in a more dangerous tone.

He wasn’t sure what it was, but Tommy felt a bit more satisfied with that kind of response. “You mean it, big man?” He asked.

Sam smiled back at him. “Sure I do. Now go get yourself some skittles or somethin’.”

Tommy’s face lit up at that. It had been a while since someone had made such a nice gesture for him. It felt really nice.

While Tommy headed to the candy aisle to grab himself a snack, Sam rang up the cigarettes and paid for them himself. Tommy grabbed a milky way bar and made his way back to the counter, a giant grin on his face. That was the first time in a long time that he’d gotten himself something, and it felt very good.

When Tommy left that gas station, he felt truly happy. Even when it began to rain as he biked home, he still felt grateful for the world. The rain made puddles, after all, and puddles are fun to run your wheels through.

Tommy laughed as he forced his bike through the large pools of water. He felt the droplets splash onto his ankles as he pedaled, the rain soaking his face with a surprisingly refreshing warmth. If he squinted, he could see a rainbow forming in the sky just above the clouds.

Tommy felt untouchable.

The noise of tires on wet gravel sounded behind Tommy, which made his head whip around behind him. Bright lights nearly blinded him from seeing the rest of the shiny green jeep. To avoid collision, Tommy pulled off towards the edge of the road to allow the vehicle an easier path.

The jeep didn’t move, though. And even as Tommy pulled off farther towards the edge, the jeep pulled up right beside him and seemed to be coming closer towards him. The jeep honked at him, catching him off guard and causing him to wobble. His fists clenched around the handlebars tighter, as he stabilized himself.

Shouts began erupting from the jeep. Tommy couldn’t catch all of the words but he did hear “blonde twink” and “faggot.” The slurs sounded like they were coming from other teen boys, but their voices sounded deeper and slightly more mature.

Tommy didn’t like being called those things. “Fuck off!” He shouted to the best of his ability, his voice being drowned out by the rain. He cursed under this breath in frustration. He needed to let these random boys know that he wasn’t messing around. So, he resorted to taking his left hand off of the handlebars and sticking his middle finger in the air.

Cruel laughter could be heard from the jeep, and suddenly the vehicle swerved towards Tommy. Only having one hand on the handlebars, Tommy yanked the right bar towards him, causing his bike to turn into the ditch. With one last wobble, he was thrown off of his bike and right into the mud and dirt.

The laughs grew louder and the tires screeched as the jeep drove away. Tommy sat up just in time to see a sticker of a white smiley face on the bumper. He scowled and looked down at himself, realizing just how dirty he was.

Mud covered his arms and legs, along with his favorite hoodie. Dirt was under his fingernails and his knees were all scraped up from the crash. Something wet and thick began to roll down the side of his head and he brought his palm up to his face. When he retracted his hand, he saw that dark red blood coated his fingers.

“Shit,” Tommy muttered.

As Tommy lifted his bike from the muddy earth, he noticed that his chain on his bike had snapped. At that point, he felt himself start to cry.

While he dragged his bike home and the tears rolled down his face, he just sniffled as quietly as he could. Because the rain felt cold and the rainbow was gone, and all that was left was a squished milky way bar in his back pocket. A milky way bar that was given to him by someone with a big heart, now ruined by boys that had no heart at all.

The world was wicked, Tommy decided.

The trek home felt like hours, but really only 30 minutes had passed when Tommy saw a strange figure in the distance. There was a person on the sidewalk, a boy, in fact, with a dark green raincoat and rain boots. There was also a backpack strapped to his back, which caused Tommy to think that he was young enough to attend school. As he grew closer, he realized that the mysterious brunette looked around his own age.

Curiosity filled Tommy as he neared the strange kid. The boy in question hadn’t seen him, his gaze seemed to be focused on the spot where the grass means the sidewalk. With interest, Tommy approached him with raised eyebrows.

“What are you doing?” Tommy asked.

The brunette looked up at him and noticed his wound immediately. With widened eyes, the boy said, “Do you need a bandaid?”

Tommy looked up towards the sky in response to the question, causing the other boy to do the same. Tommy looked back down at him after watching the rainfall for a few moments. “I don’t think a bandaid will last while it’s raining.”

The brunette shrugged and took off his backpack, carefully unzipping it and reaching inside. Tommy watched, intrigued, as the other pulled out a small box of Spongebob band-aids.

The brunette looked back up at the blonde. “They’re waterproof,” He murmured.

Before he knew it, Tommy was sitting on the ground in the rain as the stranger began to carefully place the bandaid on the cut on his temple. Tommy would flinch and hiss every once in a while, but other than that the two were silent during the entire procedure.

Then, the brunette finished with a proud smile, sitting back to admire his work. “You look funny with a bandaid on your head,” He commented with a giggle.

“Hey!” Tommy exclaimed. “Don’t be a dickhead.”

The other grinned. “I’m Tubbo, by the way.”

Tommy couldn’t help but feel his lips start to curl up at that. The name “Tubbo” was oddly fitting for the boy. He had a certain kind of obliviousness to him that Tommy couldn’t put his finger on. It was almost soothing. He felt truly comfortable around Tubbo, even if they just met a few minutes ago.

“Tommy,” The blonde replied. “What are you doing out here?”

Tubbo once again returned his gaze to the ground. Tommy followed his gaze, trying to see what exactly he was looking at. There wasn’t much to see. Muddy dirt was smearing onto the sidewalk from the aggressive rain, the grass flattening against the concrete floor.

“I’m looking for worms,” Tubbo answered innocently.

Tommy smirked and dragged his eyes from the ground. “Worms?” He repeated back to him, trying his hardest not to laugh.

Tubbo seemed to sense the judgment. “They’re wiggly and fun to play with,” He explained in defense. “I’ll show you what I mean as soon as I find one, I promise.”

Tommy was reluctant but eventually joined Tubbo in looking for the little creatures. Although they didn’t have much luck with it, Tubbo ended up keeping his promise when he did find one of the little creatures.

Tubbo held up the worm between his thumb and forefinger, watching it squirm in his grasp. He then dropped it onto his other palm and peered down at it, staring as the worm wriggled on his hand. Tommy did the same, leaning over to see what was so interesting about it.

Unexpectedly, Tubbo kneeled down and placed the worm right in the middle of the sidewalk. Tommy followed Tubbo’s movements, kneeling alongside the shorter and watching as the worm extended and retracted itself to move.

Tubbo seemed to be fascinated. “Isn’t that cool? The worm stretches out its body to move around!” He exclaimed with excitement.

Tommy gave Tubbo a lopsided grin. “You’re weird,” He commented in return.

Tubbo seemed to ignore him. “Do you want to be my friend?” He offered quietly.

Tommy was surprised by the question, and his immediate instinct was to say no. He had never had any friends before. He always ended up pushing them away before things got serious. He hated the thought of relying on others and he usually couldn’t let himself trust anyone he didn’t know. But he was in a new town, he had a new life, and maybe he should try something new for once.

“Sure,” Tommy answered, flashing Tubbo a smile.

Tubbo smiled back, completely forgetting about the worm that had made its way back to the grass. Tommy did too, because some things just didn’t matter to him. Sure, the worm was entertaining, but Tubbo offered something he’s never had before; An escape from the loneliness.

Tommy walked the rest of the way home dragging his bike alongside him, covered in mud. Yet, it didn’t bother him, because his head was bandaged and he had a friend. He finally felt like someone understood him. He didn’t feel so isolated from the world. He was included.

The house faded into Tommy’s vision eventually, and he let out a sigh of relief. The rain started to clear up while Tommy rested his bike against the front staircase. He hopped up the steps with a grin, swinging open the front door with excitement.

“Mom!” Tommy shouted as soon as he stepped foot into the house. He kneeled down to untie his sneakers, eagerly pulling at the double knots. “Mom, you’ll never guess what happened today!” He called out.

Tommy set his shoes on the vent so they would dry faster, then began to take off his wet hoodie. “When I got to the gas station, this cashier named Sam literally for the cigarettes for me! So I literally got a free milky way bar, but that’s not all! My bike broke on the way home, but it’s okay, because I made a new friend!” Tommy rambled, hanging his hoodie on the hook beside the door.

The blonde ripped off his wet socks as he talked, right before excitedly running into the living room to see where his mom was sitting. But when he entered the room, his face fell at the scene.

Tommy’s mother was passed out on the couch, mouth wide and snoring while her limbs were sprawled out like she was sunbathing. A knocked-over bottle of wine was on the ground, spilled alcohol staining the carpet. The coffee table was full of wine glasses and used vodka bottles. It wasn’t a pretty sight.

And Tommy’s whole world came crashing down on him.

Why did Tommy even think he could get a friend? _This_ is his life. Taking care of his alcoholic mother while his abusive father is still searching for his whereabouts from who knows where. He couldn’t afford to put his trust in some random kid in a green raincoat. It was too dangerous for him. Too far out of his comfort zone.

Tommy placed the cigarettes on the table next to the couch, then picked up the wine bottle from the floor. With a face of disgust, he tossed the bottle in the recycling bin. The wine glasses went in the sink, the vodka back in the cupboards. He didn’t even bother to try and clean the stain off of the carpet, he just threw a blanket over his unconscious mother and headed up to his room.

The room wasn’t familiar to Tommy yet. The house was still new to him, which just made him feel homesick. He never felt lonelier as he tucked himself in that night, not even bothering to wash the mud from under his fingernails. He’ll deal with that in the morning.

For now, Tommy just needed some rest.


End file.
